Finding Home
Chapter 44
By Voodoo Queen
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Author's Note: Hello, Dear Readers! I really have no excuse for how long this has taken me to write so I won't waste your time here trying to make excuses. I feel like I owe you an extra long chapter to make up for my absence so I hope you accept this meager offering as my form of an apology for leaving you hanging for so long. I hope you enjoy it! Thank you for all the follows and faves...so glad you all like the story. Love for those who took time to review and PM me! It's been so long and there have been so many of you that I'm skipping the list this time around. You wonderful people know who you are!
Warning for minor content of a sexual nature. I've bumped the rating to M just to be safe so, who knows, depending on how I feel we may get major content of a sexual nature somewhere along the line.
Disclaimer: I don't own Transformers, just my own original characters and plot.
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Monday rolled around and found Amy comfortably back in her uniform, strolling amongst the banks of computers, compiling data, and ensuring the information got to where it needed to go. Her job was the one aspect of her life where she could truthfully claim to possess some degree of confidence. She was never one to brag or boast, but she knew that she knew her shit when it came to her chosen profession and it instilled in her a humble sort of pride that she was entrusted with such an important endeavor. The rest of her life...not so much. Her personal life, especially, had become a learning experience. The entire weekend had been like a pendulum swinging from one extreme to the other and, though she'd come to a place of comfortable equilibrium in the end, she was glad for a return to the structure and consistency her duties provided her with, if only for a few hours.
Speaking of the weekend, her first couple of days under the twins' roof had been interesting to say the very least. The previous day had felt like some sort of strange, yet oddly educational, show-and-tell which left her feeling both intrigued and slightly scandalized. As mischievous and teasing as Sideswipe could be, he was also a perfect gentleman...at least so far as she was concerned. Though he'd asked her to show him what she enjoyed physically, he must have sensed her hesitation and embarrassment at his blatant request. So, after getting her assurance that he wasn't overstepping any bounds or making her unduly uncomfortable, he'd decided to jump in and go first.
The things she'd learned about the mechs certainly weren't found within the basic info pamphlet NEST provided its troops with upon indoctrination into their ranks.
Sides had taken her much smaller hand in his own and pressed her fingers to his metallic cheeks as he'd enthusiastically explained to her that face plates were sensitive—particularly the areas around the mouth and optics due to the thinner plating there which allowed for a greater range of motion and expression, apparently. He had shared that he, personally, had heightened sensation around his aural openings and that a soft touch or breathy whisper were typically enough to make him weak in the knees. The struts and cables located in the neck were another 'hot spot', similar to the tactile sensors Sunstreaker had showed her and so any attention directed there was always welcomed and appreciated. Speaking of his brother, he'd advised her quite candidly and with a saucy grin on how sensitive the yellow mech was along his neck and shoulders which, she theorized, probably explained why he seemed so intent on paying so much attention to those areas on her own body.
Based on her experience the previous evening, she'd believed she'd had a pretty good idea of just how sensitive chest plates could be. It wasn't until Sideswipe had informed her just how intimate both touching and being touched there was considered to be that she really began to grasp the importance of what she and Sunstreaker had shared. The chest housed the spark and the spark was literally a bot's life force. Unless there was some type of medical issue requiring it, contact with one's spark chamber was something typically reserved between partners in serious committed relationships who cared greatly for each other, not something you'd want to engage in with just anyone off the street. It made her wonder just what had been going on in Sunstreaker's mind when he'd decided to guide her fingers up beneath his armor, especially considering their turbulent early interactions where she'd been convinced the mech loathed her very existence. How far they'd come in such a short time. Just the thought of the sheer amount of trust the normally aloof mech would have had to exercise on her behalf to even allow her near that part of himself threatened to bring tears to her eyes if she thought about it too hard.
Those thoughts brought with them the recollection of what had spawned from that very intimate touch. She'd shivered, nibbling her bottom lip for a moment before speaking. "Not to change the subject but...can I ask you something?"
A lazy, contented grin had spread across the mech's face, "You can ask me absolutely anything, sweetspark." The pads of his fingers had traced gently up and down the curvature of her spine in a soothing gesture. "What's on your mind?"
Amy had asked hesitantly, still somewhat embarrassed, "You said you could feel...um...what Sunstreaker and I were doing together...in your spark, right?"
Sideswipe's grin widened as he thought back to his time spent on the beach. "Mmhmm."
Amy couldn't contain the blush that rose to her cheeks but managed to continue. "Did you feel...I mean, something happened...when I, uh, touched him there." A look of bafflement crossed her features as she'd tried to put words to what had happened. "It felt like...kind of like an out of body experience."
"Yeah," a small shiver of pleasure had rolled through Sides' frame as he remembered the sensation. "I felt that, too. It was...incredible." He gazed up at Amy, affection shined bright in his optics as he gave her a careful squeeze. "You're incredible. I've never felt anything like that before...and to be honest, I wouldn't mind feeling it again when we get it all figured out. If you'd be willing to experiment a little, that is."
Amy swallowed hard as the strange, foreign energy tucked away behind her breast bone began a slow, steady buzz and a peculiar warmth flooded her veins at the mech's words. She had the sudden sudden urge to run her hands up beneath Sideswipe's chest plates right then to see if she could recreate the same experience she'd had with his brother. Instead, she balled her hands into fists and forced herself to drag her gaze away from the mech's chest and look him in the optic. "So...I'm taking that to mean you aren't exactly sure what happened either."
Sideswipe vented thoughtfully, "We have theories but, that's really all they are. Your guess is as good as ours. The only thing I know for sure is that something amazing happened."
Amy had hummed in contemplation as she turned the experience over in her head. "Sunstreaker said he thought we...merged."
"It definitely felt like it." Sides grinned at the woman, "It shouldn't be possible. None of this should be possible. But," the mech shrugged, "then again, there's a lot we don't know about sparks and bonds. A lot of it is still a mystery...even to Cybertronians. We had a whole branch of medical science devoted to studying things like this back home and the best they could come up with was 'we don't know how it works, it just does'."
"Oh..." It wasn't a very satisfying answer but she'd accepted it with a slight frown and a nod.
"Hey," Sideswipe reached to caress the side of her face with the backs of his knuckles. "Don't overthink it, Ames. This isn't a bad thing," he assured. "It's good. It's very, very good." He'd looked thoughtful for a moment, "Don't humans have some saying about not looking down a horse's throat or something like that?"
"Huh?" Amy looked at the mech confused for a moment before it clicked in her brain and she burst out in laughter, "You mean, don't look a gift horse in the mouth?"
"That's the one! Humans are so weird. How do you guys come up with this slag?" Sides chuckled and shook his head. "The point is, the three of us have been given this amazing gift that we should be enjoying and exploring instead of picking it apart for analysis. Besides, that's what Ratchet's here for," he added cheekily.
He had a point, she'd realized. She'd spent her entire life longing for love and acceptance and they'd both been seemingly served to her on a silver platter upon her reassignment to Diego Garcia. Sure, it wasn't anything like she'd expected or ever could have imagined, but here she lay, curled up in an enormous bed with a giant robotic alien as though it were the most natural thing in the world. She loved him. She loved them both. She'd experienced something amazing and instead of embracing it she was allowing her overly analytical mind to once again get the best of her. She needed to stop before she drove herself crazy.
"Yeah," she'd sighed. "You're right..." She flushed, "It...it was pretty incredible." She'd shivered once again as Sides resumed slowly stroking his fingers up and down her back. Quietly, she'd admitted, "That feels nice..."
"Does it?" He'd raised a brow plate and slowed his movements, an impish grin lifting the corner of his mouth. "How nice?"
"R-really nice," she stuttered, cursing her own awkwardness. "It's...relaxing." Relaxing? She cringed at the word. Was that the best she could could come up with? "I-I'm sorry." She blushingly admitted, "I guess I'm not very good at this..."
Sideswipe couldn't help but chuckle at the expression on her face, as though she'd just bitten into something that didn't agree with her. "You're perfect, sweetspark," he assured sincerely. "This is supposed to be a fun way to get to know each other better. I'm not trying to stress you out. I want you comfortable and relaxed. I know this is all probably pretty weird for you."
"No," Amy vehemently denied. "It's not weird...I mean it is but, not really?" Her intended statement came out sounding more like a question. She cringed once more, "And that made absolutely no sense."
"It made perfect sense," Sides agreed.
Amy looked at the mech skeptically. "It did?"
"We're still learning here, too," he reminded her. "I don't know how many mechs you've been involved with but I can promise you that you're our first human." He waggled his brow plates suggestively which caused the woman to snort with barely restrained laughter. "We just want to make sure we're treating you right."
Equally amused and curious, Amy made a conscious effort to seize the moment and relented. "Well, when you put it that way...what do you suggest we do about that?"
Sides hummed thoughtfully, "How about..." He moved to tuck a wayward lock of hair that threatened to spill over into her face back behind her ear. As he did so, he deliberately allowed the tips of his battle-roughened fingers to gently graze against her neck, pulling a shiver from her body. "I'll do this..." His fingers moved along her jaw in a feather light touch causing her lips to part in a trembling breath. "You tell me yes or no and we'll go from there?"
"O-okay..." Amy nodded, leaning into his hand with a sigh of relief.
The mech looked at her questioningly, "That's a yes?"
"Yeah," Amy swallowed. "That's a yes."
"Excellent," a pleased grin lifted the corner of Sides' mouth as he moved on. "What about...this...?"
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Amy started suddenly as the sound of the elevator moving down the shaft broke her from her musings. She blinked rapidly, shaking her head and forcing the images of the morning she'd spent with Sideswipe to fade as she refocused her full attention on the task at hand and quickly keyed in the rest of the data she'd been working on before she'd let her mind wander. She was expecting Jazz to return from his morning meeting with Prowl at any time and had hoped to be done with her own morning duties before he returned as he'd promised to share with her some more goodies he'd managed to dig out of Teletraan's data archive that he believed she'd find interesting. To say she was excited barely scratched the surface.
She finished the last keystroke just as the elevator doors rolled open to reveal a mech who definitely wasn't her self-appointed guardian. She watched, wide-eyed and heart pounding, as Sunstreaker stepped out into the bunker proper. She couldn't help the feeling of giddy anticipation that fluttered in her stomach or the shy smile that tugged at the corners of her lips as his optics swept over the space, an almost-playful smirk crossing his features as they landed on her.
"Morning, Squishie," Sunny rumbled as he drew closer.
"Good morning," Amy returned the greeting, her voice sounding breathless even to her own ears.
Sunstreaker looked her up and down, seeming appraising her appearance for a moment, before meeting her eyes once more as he took a knee to be more on the woman's level. "You got a minute," he asked, gesturing to the banks of computers that surrounded them. "I'm not disturbing anything important am I?"
"No," Amy denied, a frown replacing her smile. It struck her as odd that the mech would even ask as he was prone to do whatever he wanted whenever he wanted to do it. "Just finishing up the morning walkthrough. Why? Is something wrong?"
"Relax, Squishie," Sunny chuckled. "You look like someone just lubricated in your energon. Nothing's wrong."
"That's...good." Amy swallowed, trying to tamp down the anxiety she suddenly felt. "So...what's up?"
"I had to leave before you woke up this morning and I just..." The mech paused for a moment, drawing air down deep into his intakes and blowing it back out slowly. He reached out, almost tentatively, as though he wished to touch her, but pulled back at the last moment and balled his hand into a fist instead. "I just wanted to make sure that you're still ok. You know," he gestured around the space, "since you're working today and all that slag."
"Oh." Relief flooded her as she realized he'd sought her out out of a feeling of concern that what they'd shared may have adversely affected her. Since 'The Merge' as she'd come to think of it for a lack of any other terminology, the normally aloof mech had seemed to take a more vested interest in her health. She looked back at him, noting his expression was softened from its typically cocky set. She also realized that he was still waiting for her answer. "I'm fine," she quickly assured. "Really."
He studied her intensely for another long moment and then, "Are you sure you feel alright? Nothing out of the ordinary? Like I said, I've never had anything like that happen before and definitely not with a human. If I somehow hurt you..."
"You didn't." Amy quickly cut him off. "I feel...great, actually." She admitted with a blush, "In fact, I've had probably the best sleep of my entire life the last couple of nights so..."
Sunny seemed to visibly relax but still sought reassurance. "You'd tell us if something was wrong, right?"
"I would," she promised. "But I'm seriously ok. Just like I've been ok the last hundred times you've asked me." She joked, trying to lighten the mood, "Have you ever considered a career in the medical field? You're starting to sound an awful lot like Ratchet."
"Human," Sunny lowered his voice to a dangerous tone, leaning in closer, close enough that Amy could feel the warm air from his ventilations wash over her, and narrowed his optics, "we may be stuck with each other, but don't push your luck. You have exactly three nano kliks to take that filthy slag back, or else." He held up a single finger, "One..."
"Nope," Amy shook her head, "See? You even have the same bedside manner..."
"Two..." he all but growled.
"I stand by my assessment," Amy goaded, surprising herself with her lack of fear. Then again, she'd seen a part of him that had left her feeling more than confident that she had nothing to fear from him. She added for good measure, "All you need is a set of wrenches to slam around."
"Ah, frag it to the Pit," Sunny vented in mock exasperation. "You're slagging lucky I like you. Get over here, Squishie."
Amy went willingly as the mech urged her closer. She wasn't sure what to expect but released a sigh of both contentment and relief as Sunstreaker bent to press his forehead to hers. It was a simple gesture but the significance wasn't lost to her. Sunstreaker wasn't the naturally lovey-dovey, touchy-feely type...not like his brother...choosing to express himself in other ways. Moments such as this, she knew, were special and said more than words ever could.
Amy's eyes drifted closed as the mech's fingers grazed across her back. The feeling was muted by the thick material of her uniform but it caused her to shiver nonetheless. Sunstreaker, as if also relieved, vented softly in response. They remained that way for a long moment, surrounded by silence punctuated only by the soft humming of computer equipment.
"Thank you," she whispered as she finally opened her eyes and pulled away. "For leaving me breakfast this morning."
"That's what I'm here for," Sunstreaker answered just as quietly as he opened his own optics to look at her.
A soft laugh escaped Amy's throat. "You're here to bring me breakfast?"
A devious grin spread across the mech's features as he replied in a low voice, "Among other things..."
Amy felt heat rise to her face at the insinuation. She floundered a beat, searching her brain for something witty to say. She offhandedly noted Sunny's seeming satisfaction at having rendered her speechless, no doubt in retaliation for her crack about his resemblance to a certain medical . It only lasted a moment, however, as their little bubble of reality was suddenly invaded by the sound of an alarm from one of the monitors from across the room.
Amy's head jerked in the direction of the incessant beeping, her professional demeanor settling over her like a cloud as she automatically moved toward the cause of the sound with an air of concern whirling around her.
"The frag is that," Sunstreaker demanded as he moved to follow, feeling more irritated at the interruption than any real concern for whatever may be happening to cause such an alarm in the first place.
Amy's fingers flew over the keyboard, silencing the cacophony of noise even as her eyes took in all the data that streamed quickly across the monitor. "It's a direct feed from the GSN."
Sunstreaker raised a brow plate in question.
"The Global Seismographic Network," Amy clarified. "They monitor for things like earthquakes and volcanic activity. Our intel parameters are set up to alert us for any seismic activity outside of the norm."
Sunstreaker frowned. "And we should give a flying frag about seismic activity because...?"
"Because Optimus Prime says we should?" Amy shrugged as she continued to scroll through the data.
"Fragging figures," the mech vented. "What a slagging mood killer."
Amy shot the mech an amused glance. "Sorry." She shook her head, turning back to the monitor she skimmed over the information on the screen. "Pueblo County, Colorado...um, hey, ok...this is weird." She motioned for the front liner to come closer. "Take a look at this. "
Sunstreaker once again lowered himself down to the woman's level, leaning in over her shoulder to see what had captured her attention, and focused on the mass of scrolling, squiggly lines that had her seemingly transfixed. "Alright, Squishie, what am I looking at?"
"It's a seismogram," Amy explained, "There are some underwater surveillance systems that have a similar readout. They're mostly used for stuff like detecting enemy movements, tracking whales and other sea life so they don't get run over, things like that. Some also monitor for underwater earthquakes and volcanic activity. It was never my job to handle things like that but I've seen enough waveforms to know the difference between environmental phenomena and something man made." She tapped the screen with her index finger. "That's not naturally occurring."
Sunstreaker leaned closer to the console and narrowed his optics, his fingers lingering on the small of the woman's back as he tried to make sense of what he was seeing. "What do you think it is?"
Amy shrugged, "It looks...mechanical, maybe? It kind of reminds me of vibrations from a deep sea oil rig but this is Colorado we're talking about. I honestly have no idea what it could be. I mean, there are a couple faults that run near Colorado Springs but..." She frowned and began to gnaw on her bottom lip as she studied the odd waveforms even as she began keying the pertinent information into her data pad. "It doesn't look right."
"It's probably nothing." The mech vented, rocked back on his pedes and took in the femme's worried expression. "No offense, Squishie," Sunny lightly teased, "but your planet is fragging weird. They were talking about some earthquake out in Colorado on the news not that long ago. Maybe it's an aftershock."
Amy gave the mech an anxious side glance. "Yeah," she agreed, not looking entirely convinced. "Maybe."
"But," he relented, wanting to wipe the look of tension of her face, "if it'll make you feel better, Prime's in the hangar waiting on Lennox so they can have their morning confab. It would probably be quicker to take it straight to him than waiting on Jazz. Primus knows, Prowl's meetings can drag on forever."
"Yes," Amy nodded, looking up to the mech gratefully. "It really would make me feel better."
"Alright then," the mech gave a decisive nod as he rose to his pedes. "Come on, I'll give you a ride."
"Thank you," Amy smiled up at the mech. "I really appreciate it."
"Yeah, yeah..." Sunstreaker rolled his optics. "You're really, really lucky I like you."
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The trip to the main hangar was a quick one. Then again, it seemed like Sunstreaker only knew two speeds in his alt mode: full throttle and complete stop. Amy counted herself lucky that he was such a skilled driver and that there'd been no casualties during the short trip. Still, she would have been lying if she said watching the mech effortlessly maneuver himself though such a small, congested space at such high speeds hadn't given her the slightest thrill. Judging by the knowing smirk he'd given her as he'd transformed back into his bipedal mode outside the hangar doors, she was pretty sure he had some idea as to the effect he'd had on her.
"Maybe I'll take you for a real ride later," he smirked at her, leaving her a sputtering mess as he turned and casually strolled into the hangar.
"Sunstreaker!" She called after him and scrambled to catch up. Ignoring his amused look, she gestured to the various military personnel transiting through the hangar. "You can't do that here!"
Sunny raised a brow plate, a mischievous glint in his optics even as he tried to school his face into a look of innocence. "Do what?"
"Ugh," Amy groaned. "Just...behave. Please. There's people." As if on cue, a Marine Brigadier General chose that moment to stroll by causing Amy to have to pop a crisp salute in greeting. "High ranking people," she added in a murmur.
"Relax, Squishie," Sunny amusedly rumbled. "You're making a big deal out of nothing again."
Amy looked up at him, perplexed, "Am I?"
"Hey, family!"
The jovial greeting had both woman and mech turning around to find Sideswipe skating up from behind. Again, Amy couldn't control the smile that spread across her face or the warmth that bloomed in her chest. She wasn't sure she would ever get used to the feeling. She wasn't sure she wanted to.
"Hello, yourself," she greeted as the mech skated a smooth circle around both she and Sunstreaker before coming to a stop with his arm slung around his brother's shoulders.
"Watch the wax, you glitch," Sunstreaker admonished, shrugging off the offending appendage.
"Aww, don't worry, Sunny," Sideswipe teased. "You're still pretty. Isn't he, Ames?"
"Very pretty," she quietly agreed even as she remained wary of those in their vicinity.
"See," Sides elbowed his brother. "Told ya. No harm done."
Sunny merely crossed his arms over his chest plates, his 'Fuck Off' persona wrapping around him like a well-worn cloak as he turned his attention to glowering menacingly at anyone who dared to invade their little bubble of space.
Sideswipe chuckled, taking no offense to his brother's shift in attitude whatsoever. There was a Private Sunny and a Public Sunny and he was well acquainted with both. "Anyway," he turned his attention to the femme, "what are you doing here? I figured you'd still be playing with your computers."
"Compiling data," Amy corrected. "I was...I am. Something strange popped up and I thought I'd probably better pass it along sooner rather than later."
Sides brow plate quirked up in curiosity, "Strange how?"
"Strange like I've never seen it before." She shrugged. "Like Sunstreaker said, it's probably nothing. Just doing my due diligence."
"Speaking of due diligence," Sunny spoke up once more. His sharp optics had zeroed in on Epps who was chatting with a group of soldiers across the hangar. "I have something I need to take care of." He clapped his brother on the arm and gave Amy a look full of promise. "I'll see both of you later."
"Be nice," Sideswipe grinned.
"Aren't I always?" Sunstreaker smirked as he turned to stalk across the hangar. "Epps!" He bellowed, sending humans scattering as they hurried to get out of his way. "Who do I need to threaten to get a hydraulic door opener?"
Sideswipe shook his head. "Ten bucks says he gets someone to fix it by lunch."
"Uh uh," Amy declined the bet, resuming her trek toward the Command Center. "Every human being on this base is literally terrified of your brother. I know enough not to bet against a sure thing."
"Smart femme," Sides commented as he rolled alongside her, keeping pace.
"Do you know if Lennox and Prime haven't started their morning brief yet?" She looked up at the mech. "I don't want to interrupt."
"Nope." Sides made an amused noise. "Lennox is in Galloway's office having a friendly discussion about resource expenditures. The screaming hasn't started yet so I guess you probably have at least another twenty minutes until the Captain shows up all red faced and angry."
"Thanks," Amy snorted. "Good to know."
"Hey, Ames...wait for a second." Sideswipe came to a stop prompting he woman to do the same.
Amy frowned taking in the serious look on the mech's face. "What is it?"
"Before you get busy, I just wanted to thank you." He lowered his voice, speaking just loud enough for her to hear. "For the other morning. For trusting me like that. I've been thinking and I know it probably wasn't easy for you..."
Amy said nothing, merely nodding.
"And," the mischievous sparkle was back in his optics, "I'm hoping you enjoyed yourself as much as I did."
Amy took a deep breath, trying to fight against the blush that threatened to overtake her face. She had enjoyed herself. Very much so...more than was probably proper to discuss given their current whereabouts. She settled for a quietly spoken, "I did."
The mech had grinned widely at that. "So...does that mean if I wanted to, let's say, seduce you sometime...you'd be alright with it?"
"You want to seduce me?" Amy's eyes widened. As she'd said the words, a couple civilian support personnel had been walking closely by and she could have sworn she'd seen their steps falter ever so slightly as they looked in their direction.
"I'll take that as a yes." He seemed completely unbothered by the possibility of being overheard.
"First Sunstreaker, now you." Amy scrubbed a hand down her face. "What has gotten into you guys this morning."
Sideswipe grinned, "You."
Amy wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry and so simply sighed and shook her head.
The mech chuckled amusedly. Deciding to have some mercy on the woman, he relented, "I'll be good. And," he added, sounding dejected, "I should probably get back to work. I saw you and Sunny come in here and really just wanted to say hi but, if Prowl happens to show up and I'm not where I'm supposed to be..." He trailed off, leaving the rest unspoken.
"Please don't get yourself into trouble," Amy all but begged. "Especially not on my account."
"I'm not trying to," he insisted. "But, if it happens, between you and me," he winked a her, "it was totally worth it."
Amy flushed, "Sideswipe..."
The mech threw his hands up in defeat, grinning cheekily as he backed away from her. "I'm going, I'm going..." Clasping his hands over his spark chamber in a quiet, unspoken declaration of affection, he spared her one last long look before spinning gracefully on his wheels and racing back the way he'd come.
Amy watched him go, immediately missing the company, but also feeling strangely content. So much so, that it took her a moment to realize that she was still standing in the middle of the hangar and smiling like an idiot for no apparent reason. With a quick reminder to herself that she'd come here on official business, she squared her shoulders and did an about face with every intention of heading straight to Prime with no further distractions. Instead, she found herself nearly nose to nose with one of the last people she really wanted to talk to.
"Good morning, Petty Officer Doe." Macy, the red-headed, bespectacled, and more than a little creepy, tech analyst was less than a hair's breadth from her face.
Amy fought the incredible urge to jump back away from the other woman in order to preserve her much cherished personal space. To say she was uncomfortable with the close proximity would have been an understatement but something almost instinctual kept her rooted to the spot. She schooled her features into a semblance of cool calm and greeted the woman, "Good morning...uh...Macy, right?"
"That's right," the red head nodded, a tight smile on her face, as she continued to stare at Amy with an almost smug expression.
"Um," Amy did her best not to fidget. "Is there anything I can help you with? Did you need me for something?"
The woman shook her head. "No. I saw you come in and wanted to speak with you since I feel like we got off on the wrong foot but you looked like you were pretty much...occupied."
Amy's brow furrowed. "Occupied?"
"I wanted to tell you, you were right," Macy continued. "Some things in this type of environment are completely uncalled for and unprofessional and all it takes is one wrong person to see or overhear and you can pretty much kiss your whole life goodbye. I'd really hate for something like that to happen. Wouldn't you?"
Amy felt a knot of anxiety form the pit of her stomach but miraculously managed to keep a straight face. "Yeah," she nodded. "I would."
"Good. I'm glad we're on the same page. Anyway," the other woman finally stepped back enough to allow Amy to breathe comfortably. "That's all I wanted to say. I hope you have a great day."
"Yeah," Amy muttered as she watched the woman turn and disappear into the throng of morning traffic that transversed the hangar. "You too..."
Her good mood thoroughly dampened, she shoved the weird encounter to the back burner of her mind to deal with later and pressed on toward her destination. Thankfully, Captain Lennox was still nowhere to be seen...most likely still engaged in a "discussion" with Galloway if Sideswipe's intel was accurate. She spotted Prime easily. The mech was hard to miss. Literally standing head and shoulders over everyone and everything else. He'd taken up his usual spot near the Command Center, no doubt analyzing the constant stream of information NEST received. Ironhide, with whom Amy seemed to have recently cultivated a strangely cordial relationship without even trying, stood off to the side polishing his already-gleaming cannons.
"Good morning!" Amy greeted the mechs as she approached.
"Petty Officer Doe," Prime smiled down on the woman. "A good morning to you, as well."
Ironhide, barely looking up from his task, grunted in agreement.
"I'm not interrupting, am I," she asked as she began her ascent up the stairs to the platform that would bring them eye-to-optic.
"Not at all," Prime answered. "Captain Lennox has been unfortunately delayed this morning."
Amy grimaced in sympathy. "Yeah, I heard."
"Is there something I can help you with?" Prime took on a slightly concerned tone, "Everything is well with Jazz and the twins?"
"Oh, yeah," Amy quickly confirmed. "Everything's great, thanks for asking."
"Ah," Primed nodded, looking pleased. "I had hoped so. In that case, am I right to assume this is a professional visit and not a personal one?"
"Yes, sir." Amy handed over the data pad she'd been clutching under one arm to the mech, watching as it was engulfed by his gigantic hand. "I was doing my morning walkthrough and we received an alarm."
The statement seemed to pique even Ironhide's attention as he stopped what he was doing to listen.
"There was some seismic data sent over from the GSN that looked kind of weird." Amy took a deep breath, "Actually, I'm not sure exactly how weird it is since seismology isn't my area of expertise but it looked odd enough that I wanted to bring it to someone's attention. Jazz was still meeting with Prowl, so..."
"No," Prime assured, "you did the right thing bringing it to my attention. Always best to err on the side of caution."
Amy nodded, "I thought so, too."
Amy felt herself to relax slightly as Optimus began looking over the data she'd brought. By the look of determined concentration on his face plates, she could tell he took her concerns seriously which made her feel better about passing them along. She noted Ironhide had most likely lost interest and had returned to maintaining his arm-mounted arsenal. To pass the time while she waited for Prime's verdict and further orders, she took up people watching. Her current perch proved to be an excellent vantage point and she found herself slightly envious of the height the Autobots naturally enjoyed.
As her eyes roved over the expanse of the hangar, they seemed to be immediately drawn to a shock off red hair. Again, she found herself frowning as she watched the woman scramble to and fro in her work space. Compared to their first run in, her second contact with the analyst hadn't just been uncomfortable, it had been distressing.
"Man," Amy mumbled to no one in particular. "I'd love to know what her deal is..."
"Who?"
The sudden sound of Ironhide's voice startled her and she turned to her right to find the mech looking at her with a brow plate raised in question.
Amy chuckled a bit at her own jumpiness before answering. "Uh, the red head over there," she gestured to the other side of the hangar. "The tech analyst."
Ironhide's face scrunched up into a look of disgust. "Macy Harmon," he spoke the name as if it left a bad taste in his mouth.
Amy nodded on confirmation. "You know her?"
"Yeah," Ironhide shuddered, giving the woman his full attention. "If you want my advice, stay away from her. She's slagging strange...even for a human."
Amy couldn't help but grin, "Yeah, Sunstreaker pretty much said the same thing."
Hide snorted, "I have to agree with him for once." He shot a wary glance to the other side of the hangar where the woman had disappeared back into her cubicle. "Something about her makes my armor itch."
"She is an odd one," Prime murmured in agreement as he continued to study the data pad Amy had provided. "Attempts to interact have proved to be quite...uncomfortable."
"You're telling me," Amy muttered, a shudder working its way down her spine as she remembered the two brief yet disturbing conversations she'd been subjected to. "If she creeps everyone out, why keep her around?"
Optimus emitted an irritated grunt, "She's part of Advisor Galloway's personal attaché. I'm afraid we're stuck with the both of them for the foreseeable future."
"Oh," Amy frowned. "Sorry. That sucks."
An amused smile plucked at the corners of Prime's mouth, "Indeed it does."
Ironhide spoke up once more, "Did those two loud mouths you've been hanging around with with tell you what she did?"
Amy shrugged, choosing to ignore the mech's mild insult toward the twins. "I'm not sure they know the whole story. They said something about being told to steer clear of her because she was being inappropriate towards Mirage. Which," she added, "if you've ever spoken with her for more than five minutes isn't really all that hard to imagine." She turned back to the weapons specialist, hoping for both a juicy story she could share with the twins later and a distraction. "Do you know what happened? With her and Mirage, I mean?"
"Do I?" A sly grin stretched Ironhide's features. "Femme, I stood there and watched it happen."
"Really?" Intrigued, Amy leaned against the railing, giving the mech her full attention and hoping he'd continue.
Ironhide, never one to disappoint when it came to gossip, eyed the woman critically, "How familiar have you gotten with Cybertronian anatomy?"
Optimus perked up at the question, shooting his friend a warning look, "Ironhide..."
The mech looked to his leader and shrugged. "What? She wants to know and it's relevant to the story."
Optimus vented and shook his head, reluctantly allowing the conversation to continue. "Very well."
Amy looked between the two mechs, nibbling her bottom lip for a moment before deciding to omit the knowledge Sunstreaker and Sideswipe's hands on tutorials had provided her with. She answered the question fairly honestly, "I'm not, really...at least not beyond the obvious. Arms, legs, head..." she shrugged, trailing off.
"Right," Ironhide didn't look at all convinced by her answer but continued on. "Well, the next time you get the chance, pay attention to how Mirage folds up. Particularly," he leaned in closer to the woman, indicating his own pelvic region with a discrete wave of his hand, "this area. In Mirage's case," he smirked, "all the really vital components wind up under his hood. Remember that. It's important."
Prime emitted an amused hum, clearly keeping an audio the conversation despite having the majority of his attention diverted toward business matters.
Amy's brow furrowed and she nodded her head, "Okay..."
"So, anyway," Ironhide leaned toward the woman, resting his elbows along the railing. "Before we ended up here, they were keeping us at the Department of Energy in DC. Tiny, little scrap hole of a garage. No space. No privacy. Barely enough room to fold up and recharge after a long day. Guess your people thought they could just park us somewhere and forget about us until they needed us to save their afts from the Decepticons."
Amy cringed at the accusation. Sadly, she knew it was probably close to the truth. "I'm...sorry."
"Ironhide," Prime vented once again and looked up from the data pad. He turned his attention to Amy, "Pay no mind to anything Ironhide says. He isn't happy unless he has something to complain about. It wasn't nearly as bad as he lets on."
Ironhide made no attempt to argue with Prime's assessment and Amy had always gotten the impression that the two of them were close friends aside from being brothers in arms. This mild ribbing, all in good humor, a perfect example of the type of dynamic they shared in which Optimus usually ended up playing the straight man to Ironhide's more eccentric demeanor. Not to say that Optimus Prime lacked a sense of humor—that couldn't have been further from the truth. She'd seen brief glimpses of it in the meetings she'd attend occasionally with Jazz, when Prime was most relaxed and safely amongst his own kind and out of the line of sight of military brass and government bureaucrats. Unfortunately, his position, the weight of his duties, and the direness of their situation often prevented such freedom of expression outside of those small, more intimate settings. It was sad, really, and her heart went out to the mech.
"As I was saying," the burly mech continued, not missing a beat, "there was no privacy. We'd come in from being out in the field and if you wanted to get any time to yourself at all, your only option was to basically transform into your alt mode and try to find a corner to squeeze into to get out of personnel traffic coming in and out."
"That doesn't sound very comfortable," Amy softly commented.
"It wasn't," Hide agreed. "This particular night, we'd gone out to investigate a Con sighting. By the time we arrived, there wasn't much to investigate but Starscream was still hanging around. The fragger took a couple random pot shots at us before flying off and managed to hit Mirage below the belt. The damage wasn't too bad, mostly just some minor armor damage, and Ratchet fixed him up pretty quick. I can tell you from experience, though, being smashed in the equipment slagging hurts."
Prime made a sympathetic sound as if he, too, was familiar with the pain.
Amy nodded in understanding. "Kind of like a human getting kicked in the balls?"
"Exactly like that," Hide confirmed. "So naturally, Mirage just wanted to find some quiet spot to recharge it off, you know?"
Again, Amy nodded.
"So, he was parked at the far end of the garage with his hood up, for comfort, I'm guessing. I was over in the corner putting together a plasma cannon upgrade I'd been working on for Bee when this crazy looking femme I'd never seen before comes sniffing around. I was busy so really didn't pay her much attention," Ironhide shrugged. "At least I didn't until she started circling around Mirage like some kind of deranged scraphound in heat."
Amy, engrossed in the story, leaned in even closer to the mech. "So what happened?"
"Everyone knew to leave us alone when we were in our alt modes since it was assumed we were recharging." Hide shook his head, "She knew she was wrong because she kept looking around to make sure no one was watching. She circles around and stops right in front of him, just kinda staring down into his open 'engine block'. Before I realized what she was doing, she'd reached in and grabbed whatever she could get her claws on."
Amy jerked her head back, "Oh, my God...So, what you're saying," she surmised, "is that she basically walked up to him and shoved her hands down his pants while he was sleeping?"
"A fitting analogy," Prime agreed, looking up from the data pad with an amused look. "A shame you weren't here when I was trying to explain the situation to Lennox. He was having a difficult time understanding why Mirage was so up in arms over the incident."
"She claimed she was just curious and didn't know what it was she was fondling." Hide rolled his optics, "But it's kind of hard to mistake for anything else, if ya know what I mean."
"Poor Mirage...that's terrible." Amy shook her head, "Who even does that?"
"Someone that isn't torqued too tight," Ironhide answered, tapping the side of his head. "I'm telling you, femme, stay away from her. She's fragging glitched. You can tell just by looking at her."
Amy shook her head, "And you just stood there and watched it happen?"
Ironhide merely shrugged, "How was I supposed to know she was a sexual predator? Besides, some good came of it. Prime an' Prowl took the matter up with the SecDef and got us moved out here. Total quality of life improvement for everyone."
"Well," Amy offered skeptically, "good on Mirage for taking one for the team, I guess..."
"You should have heard him squeal," Hide chuckled in amusement. "You'd think he'd never been manually serviced by a femme before..."
Optimus made a sputtering sound, "Ironhide!"
"What?" Hide gestured toward Amy. "She's an adult. She's practically living with the Twin Terrors. She's gonna be exposed to this slag one way or another." He eyed her suspiciously once more, "If she hasn't been already."
"This is not the time or the place to have a discussion about cohabitation and the activities that may come with it," Prime quickly shushed the other mech as a group of Army officers and visiting government dignitaries filed by, casting curious looks in the direction of the two large mechs and the tiny human woman. He cleared his vocalizer, obviously uncomfortable with the sudden turn the conversation had taken, and addressed Amy who was by now blushing scarlet. He spoke in a low, private tone, "Ratchet is always available to answer any questions or address any concerns you may have in regards to the...physical aspects of a cross-species relationship. I do not recommend deferring to Ironhide in such matters."
"Why not?" Hide huffed, planting his hands on his hips and looking mildly offended. "I've never gotten any complaints."
"Okay..." Amy interrupted the pair, suddenly wishing there was a hole she could crawl into and die. She pressed her cool hands to her hot face and tried to change the subject. "Um, thanks but, uh, I think I'm good. Uhm...what about the seismic anomaly?"
"Of course," Prime, too, looked relieved at the change of subject as he referred back to the data pad. "From what I've learned of your planet, this certainly doesn't appear to be any naturally occurring phenomenon that I'm familiar with which warrants further investigation. I've downloaded the data you've given me and will discuss it with the Captain once he arrives. The best course of action would probably be to get eyes on the location in order to determine the actual cause of the activity."
Amy nodded, feeling both relieved and justified in her original concern.
"Should you come across any other anomalous readings, I'd ask that you forward them to myself directly." Prime passed the data pad back to the woman. "I'll bring Jazz and Prowl up to speed as soon as they're available."
Amy readily agreed, "Understood, sir."
"Until then," Prime vented, "did Jazz teach you how to route all incoming data transfers through Teletraan?"
"Yes," Amy confirmed. "That was one of the first things he taught me."
"Excellent." Prime continued, "Let's do that. Run a comparative analysis and see if we can't pinpoint a possible natural or industrial cause for this disruption. Barring that, we'll have to assume the cause is...unnatural."
"I'll get right on that, sir." Doe, out of habit, popped a crisp salute before turning to leave the way she'd come. She'd barely made it to the bottom of the stairs when she was stopped once more by Prime's voice.
"Petty Officer Doe?"
She turned, looking inquisitively up at the mech. "Yes, sir?"
Optimus looked kindly back at the woman. "Outstanding work."
The slightest smile touched her lips. "Thank you, sir."
Prime and Ironhide looked after her as she hurried back to attend to her duties, finally disappearing into the mass of people that always crowded the hangar this early in the morning.
It was Ironhide that finally spoke, "Do you think it's anything to be worried about?"
"I sincerely hope not." Prime turned to his friend, "But I have a nagging feeling that there's a lot more to this than meets the optic."
Hide looked pensive for a moment. "You think the Cons are sniffing around again looking for the Allspark?"
"That, my old friend," Optimus admitted, "is exactly what I'm afraid of."
End of Chapter 45
